JUST IN: NASCAR Legendary driver is back to racing again

Peak Camaro returns with Beckman at the wheel at Brainerd, Minnesota (August 15, 2024). After a three-race hiatus, the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS returns to the NHRA Mission Foods tour this week at the 42nd Lucas Oil Nationals, this time without 16-time Funny Car World Champion John Force at the wheel.

While Force recovers from a TBI sustained in a June 23 incident in Richmond, Virginia, veteran Jack Beckman will drive the aqua blue John Force Racing Chevy when qualifying begins Friday at Brainerd International Raceway.

Beckman, the 2012 NHRA Funny Car Champion and one of only a few drivers with a winning record against Force in the national series, inherits a race car that won twice in the first eight races of the season and equaled the second quickest elapsed time over the last seven seasons at 3.820 seconds, a time matched by teammate Austin Prock’s Cornwell Tools Camaro in Gainesville.

“I am thrilled to be a part of the return of the PEAK Camaro SS,” stated Beckman, who is 58 years old. “It has been over four years since I made a championship-winning run, and more than sixteen years since I drove a Funny Car while still having a full-time job (as an elevator maintenance mechanic).

“Along with thousands of fans in Minnesota, I will have John in my heart this weekend,” stated the coach. “His team and I will do everything we can to make PEAK, our other corporate partners, the fans and John proud.”

Beckman, one of only a few racers to have won NHRA series titles in both the pro and sportsman divisions (he was the 2003 NHRA Super Comp Champion), last competed at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in November 2020.

He prepped for his comeback to the pro tour by finishing second in the Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire in Norwalk, Ohio, which was not part of the NHRA schedule.

“We got to step on the throttle a bunch of times,” stated the driver. “I completed the runs required to renew my license, and we probably learnt a few things about the automobile. John and I do not weigh the same, and our driving techniques are slightly different. It’s critical to restore things back to being predictable for the crew, as it was when John drove.”

Although his Brainerd resume does not boast 15 final round appearances, 11 wins, and eight No. 1 starts like Force’s, Beckman has had his moments in the Lucas Oil Nationals, including a win from the No. 14 starting position in 2018, a pair of previous runner-up finishes (2008 and 2010), and No. 1 starts in

Beckman, a U.S. Air Force veteran and cancer survivor, rose to prominence as a teacher at Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School long before he sat in an 11,000 horsepower Funny Car. In fact, he taught drag racing fundamentals to Force’s daughters Brittany and Courtney, as well as his wife, Laurie.

“I’m not replacing John,” Beckman insisted. “Nobody could ever accomplish it. John is one-of-a-kind, and his influence on the sport and my life cannot be overstated. I understand how lucky I am to be in this situation.